News

Temporary Cooling for Healthcare Facilities

04/25/2016 08:00:00

If the air conditioning goes down for a business in the heat of summer, it may be able to get by or at the very worst suspend operations for a day or two until the issue is fixed. This is not the case when we talk about a hospital or other healthcare facility. Temperature control is crucial to a hospital for a number of different reasons:

First and foremost, there is the issue of patient comfort. Patients obviously need to have an optimal external setting as they heal. Any temperature that is too hot or cold could potentially bring unneeded stress that could affect their ability to get well. Anything above room temperature will affect patient comfort.

In addition to that, you have to think of doctors, nurses, and other staff members as well. The hospital can be a very stressful environment where an emergency could occur at any second. Hospital employees must always be “on” and need room temperature in a hospital to be at a comfortable level. Just think about where you work. If it’s too cold or hot, is your productivity and mood affected? The same holds true for hospital staff too.

Moreover, air conditioning could be a necessity for some patients given their illness or infliction. For example, cardiac patients may not be able to regulate heat as well because of poor circulation. For these patients, air conditioners are necessary to maintain a normal body temperature. Those with a high fever or brain injury may also be affected by warmer temperatures. Finally, warmer temperatures could affect sterility, putting those with weakened immune systems already at risk.

How Can Hospitals Better Manage These Risks

There’s no question that an adequate HVAC system is crucial for any hospital. It can not only mitigate the risks mentioned above; a newer efficient model could also lower energy costs to give hospitals breathing room with their operating costs. Given the importance of a well-running HVAC system then, it only makes sense that administrators have a back-up plan to ensure operations in the event that the cooling goes down. This is could be planned or unplanned.

For example, we worked with one hospital’s contractor who was attempting to install a new air conditioning system. While the new AC unit would certainly be an improvement over the old one, the contractor still had an issue: he had to maintain cooling as the hospital simply couldn’t suspend operations. The contractor called us, and we were able to implement a cooling solution until the new permanent system was installed.

In other cases, an emergency, like equipment failure or a natural disaster, could occur, requiring a temporary cooling solution until the permanent system can be repaired. A temporary AC unit from Carrier Rental Systems may be the best option to help hospitals maintain operations if an adverse event were to occur. We understand how critical an outage may be in the healthcare setting, and we are always ready to design and implement a cooling solution to meet a facility’s requirements. Contact us today to discuss your cooling needs.